


Arrow and Si Merah

by annplanet



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alec's baby Arrow, Alec's just, Black Stallion, Enemies to Lovers, Fluff and Angst, Horse Rider AU, M/M, Magnus' baby Si Merah, Suspense, They're both such little shits to one another, really proud of his horse, red mare
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-13
Updated: 2018-02-13
Packaged: 2019-03-17 19:34:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13665846
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/annplanet/pseuds/annplanet
Summary: Alec Lightwood, the owner of award winning horse in America, Arrow, meets his match in the the form of a beautiful man named Magnus Bane, the owner of award winning horse in Europe, Si Merah.Will he be able to win in the Annual Alicante Derby while keeping his attraction and animoisty for Magnus in check? What happens when he finds out what resides behind those shrouded eyes? What happens when he reveals his own despairs to the man he's supposed to hate?Conflicted things happen, that I can assure you





	Arrow and Si Merah

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! I'm back with another mediocre piece of a fic. I really don't like the first chapter much because you could clearly see that I was holding back on a lot of stuff because I want all the stuff to spread out over 5 chapters, so sorry if this chapter seems off. 
> 
> Now onto the dedications.   
> I want to thank [Eilen](https://twitter.com/lovestruckbane) for helping me find the name Si Merah which suits the red mare a lot. Thank you love!
> 
> And also I love Nin and Sneha so much. Decided this is the right time to say it. But tbh, when's not the right time to say it?
> 
> A small disclaimer: I don't anything about horse riding and horses in general. The stuff I've learnt are from multiple sources, and I might make somethings up to keep the story going to apologies in advance if some of the stuff written is incorrect.

** **

The green fields shone with promises of cooperating wind under the blazing sun. The day was hot, but a persistent wind lingered to provide a much bearable climate. Alec was grateful, because he took this as a sign that the Annual Alicante Derby will be a great success for him.

He leaned against the fence, and observed his horse, Arrow, the black stallion, with a proud and affectionate smile. The horse was currently nuzzling the luscious green grass with its snout, making the occasional grunting sounds whenever it tickled the insides of his nose. Simon Lewis, who is the jockey for his horse, petted it on its back, smiling at the horse with the similar affection as Alec was.

Alec Lightwood, the business tycoon, who also had a soft spot for horses, was currently in Illinois to attend a horse race for his beloved horse. Whenever he had to talk about himself in meetings and such, he would always term his passion for his horse and horse racing as hobby pursued at his own leisure. But of course, if his friends were around to witness his blatant cover-up, they would laugh at his face and maybe even fall on the floor on purpose.

Because everyone knew that horses and horse racing wasn't something Alec Lightwood did just to 'pass time'.

It was hardly an activity he did at his leisure. If there was ever a possibility of a horse race his colt could win, he would drop anything he was doing to book a winning spot for Arrow.

Also, the most known quality of him during the derbies were that he was super competitive.

In the early onset of his 'past time', he used to be super nervous whenever his horse raced in the derbies. Mostly because he always was unsure of whether his horse and he would win. But maybe it was Simon's expertise as a jockey or his horse' natural talent of running at high speed, after winning several first places in derbies, Alec became very confident of his horse being the fastest in America.

He knew it was very egoistic for him to assume something of that title for Arrow, but hey, he was just assuming based on evidence. There's not been a single derby he had taken part in where Arrow didn't win. In fact, nowadays, whenever people saw Arrow's name as a participant on the registration sheet, they knew not expect anything but the black stallion taking the cup for first place home fair and square.

So, Alec's pride for his horse was very understandable.

During the time of no derbies, Alec preferred to be around his horse and take him on rides. There was special bond between Arrow and him, which wound between them in less than a second. The bond formed when Alec had seen him as a timid, but determined little foal. Izzy, his sister, often teased about the day he bought Arrow as his own horse. According to her, when Alec had looked at Arrow for the very first time,  his eyes 'lit up like a giant jumbo-tron with two large hearts exposing themselves from the eye sockets'. A part of Alec admitted to that...observation because that was almost as how he had felt when he had seen Arrow for the first time. The other part just huffed petulantly and did not answer.

The explanation for the quickness of his connection with his beloved colt could be that there were often many similarities between them, despite them being of, um, different species altogether. Arrow, like Alec, was a very quiet horse. The animal rarely played around and seemed to be as diligent and determined as Alec was in many things. But if you looked closely into the races Arrow had taken part in, you would be able to spot the same aura of competitiveness as his human counterpart. Izzy once had insistently debated with Alec that she had seen Arrow snorting at a horse haughtily when he went past it in a derby.

Of course, Alec found himself denying his sister's imagination as he had been too busy snorting in amusement at the owner of the horse surpassed by Arrow.

So, like father, like son.

Alec smiled inwardly at the memory of his horse' first win. It seemed like the horse and the owner were both shocked because neither of them could stand firmly on the stage without letting one tear drop out of their eyes. The night right after the first win, Alec snuck into the stables and played with Arrow in triumph. And the horse itself was very pleased to be in the company of his once-in-a-while happy master.

"Careful," a voice suddenly spoke out from behind. He turned his head lazily to spot it was Lydia Branwell, his newly-made best friend approaching him with a mischievous smile. "Hubris can often alter with one's performance."

Alec snorted before turning away to observe Arrow once again. "I think you should be telling that to my horse. Although, if he could speak, he would probably tell you that that's bullshit."

Lydia laughed at his wit. "Okay, okay," she relented, raising her arms in surrender. "Clearly confidence is something what both of you thrive on." She stood next to him, mirroring his position by also leaning against the fence.

Few minutes with the two best friends silently observing the horses play around on the field along with their jockeys. Not surprisingly enough, Lydia had managed to spot Alec's horse with ease, despite never seeing Alec's horse. Of course, Arrow was the only jet black horse competing in the game.

"He looks so majestic and strong, Alec," Lydia said breathlessly, her awe showing very clearly on her face, mostly in her clear blue eyes. "Damn, you've maintained him quite well."

As if Alec's pride couldn't be shown anymore greater, he stood up straighter and beamed in the compliments. He wasn't good at receiving compliments regarding himself, but receiving compliments for his horse's stead was something he did gladly. Although, once someone  had complimented Arrow right in front of him, making the horse to lower its head (an equivalent of him blushing). Alec noticed and blushed himself. Another similarity between him and the colt.

As Lydia kept asking him questions based on horse races and derbies, Alec noticed a significant rise in people arriving at the field to observe the horses. He could hear some chanters of awe coming from a group of people behind him, and he saw another man standing near Lydia with his eyes silently appraising the view.

Alec ignored the extra viewpoints and sounds in favor of passionately explaining to Lydia some of the basics of the horse-racing, "There are three types of straight bets," he began. Lydia giggled to which Alec rolled his eyes, "Ha ha, yes I know you're laughing because I'm not straight but concentrate now." Lydia immediately stopped her giggles, but a teasing smile persisted on her face. The types are win bet, which is if you bet a horse is going to win first place, the place bet where you bet a horse coming either first or second and the show bet, where the horse is wagered  to come first, second or third."

Lydia nodded understandably. Alec continued on, "Now you may be thinking what exactly are derbies-"

A loud voice from behind cut off Alec momentarily. "Now would you look at that black horse over there! It looks so fucking dope!"

Alec clenched his jaw to prevent the smile that was threatening to emerge. Lydia caught it anyways and grinned at his resistance. "-they're basically stakes for three year old horses. Now, stakes are basically a very superior race, held for high-quality horses."

"That's got to be the key horse, _man_. _Hell_ , that's got to be the pacesetter!" another voice responded to the previous loud voice.

Alec's smile could no longer be contained. The words 'key horse' and 'pacesetter' tempted him to almost turn back and say 'damn right' to the two guys. A horse is referred as the 'key horse' when it is betted on in almost all exotic bets, and 'pacesetter' is the horse which remains in the front during a race. The two titles which very much suited Arrow.

"... . A marathon, on the other hand, is a race of a mile and quarters or longer," Alec continued but with a prominent lightness in his tone. Lydia's grin seemed to have become bigger, if that was even possible.

"I really want to know what's that horse's name and number because I need to bet on it for the coming race," one of the men said to the other with determination.

Usually, Alec wasn't a very social man. He rarely instigated conversations or even small talks. But if someone ever gave him a chance to talk about his sister's accomplishments, or his horse, let's just say that his tongue tended to become loose and his spirit ran on high energy off boastful verbatim; He never found any of his own passions and achievements worth talking about,  but his sister and his horse seemed far more achieving than him, thus it was easy and also put him in his comfort zone during the discussions of  those two relevant topics in his life.

Alec turned around and gave a very polite, and helpful smile (something that made Lydia's jaw almost drop because she rarely saw Alec _this_ nice), "Excuse me," he began, gathering the attention of the two young men staring in awe at Arrow. "I couldn't help but over-hear, you seemed to be interested in knowing more about Arrow?"

The two men stared up at him blankly, not in a rude way, "What?" one of them blurted dumbly.

Alec, resisted the roll his eyes, forcibly maintaining his composure of ego. He turned his body gracefully to face the wooden fence, before leaning slightly towards the two men and pointing at Simon and Arrow playing around in the field with his index finger. "See that black horse over there?"

The two men looked at the magnificent creature, which coincidently began to run around the field, testing the feel of the grass under his hooves. The realization and the knowledge settled on their faces with pleasant surprise.

"That's my horse. Arrow," Alec said, beaming with pride. Arrow's mane flew behind him with regality and order, his skin gleamed in the glory of the sun, deriving the shining quality of it in its breathtaking run. Simon stood in one place, admiring the horse like the other spectators, despite having ridden that horse for an infinite number of times.

Alec followed Arrow's movements with expectation and love. He felt the energy the horse was radiating, and was slightly ennuied at the fact that he wasn't anywhere close to one of his best friends. Although, Arrow suddenly whooshed past the people standing against the fence, which were Alec, Lydia, and the two awed men; giving them a glimpse of his magnificence up close. It was insane how well Alec knew his horse, for he knew that the reason Arrow did that was not solely to show off, but also to greet his owner's presence with a happy neigh.

"Wow," one of the men spoke in midst of the beautiful scene, the reverence displaying well in his voice.

Arrow finally stopped his run, halting precisely in front of Simon, who began to pet it with happiness. Even from afar, Alec could make out that Simon was uttering the words 'Good boy' repeatedly at his horse. Arrow didn't seemed to mind it, as he silently accepted the patting with a pleased mood.

It took about an entire minute for Alec to take his eyes off the black stallion, and turn to the two men once again, who themselves were having trouble removing their eyes from the stallion. "I guess you got a demonstration of how my horse is going to win next week's derby fair and square," he said with raised eyebrows, his voice holding some heaviness due to the pride within him.

If anyone had told Alec at that moment how cocky he sounded in that statement, he would pretend their presence wasn't even there. Because, all that he said was a fact...

...Well, in his head.

"You can say that louder," one guy admitted to the 'fact'. He let out a whistle of amazement, "I think I now know which horse to root for next week."

"I mean-" Alec shrugged his shoulders, "-it's better for the heart to just root for the winning horse."

"Alec," Lydia's voice suddenly perked up out of nowhere. Her tone contained a mix of both of a warning and a scolding.

Before Alec could ask a generic 'What?', another voice spoke, "Hello."

He turned his head curiously, his eyes landing on the chest of a man, wearing a fashionable grey shirt with swirling black prints. The legs of the man were covered with a pair of tight, yet elegant pants, that withheld a very dark shade of blue, that it almost could pass off as black. As his eyes went further above, he was pleasantly surprised to receive such a beautiful sight.

The man was a literal _God_.

It surprised Alec as well how his knees hadn't bucked under the weight of the man's grounding brown eyes, which were lined very precariously with a black liner, accentuating the intensity with an artistic stroke. His cheekbones were high and proud; his lips pink plush, and pink. Alec's heart beat faster than the speed Arrow was just running in, but he could hardly be blamed, who wouldn't get a near heart attack at the sight of this man?

'Uh-um...yes?" Alec said with great difficulty, his tongue had seemed to become just a useless muscles in his mouth. His ear however, was betraying him, letting them be drowned with the sounds of his own heartbeat and sniggers from Lydia.

The man smiled politely, albeit with a slight condescension in his eyes. This made Alec calm down a little, confused as to the stiff demeanor of the other man.

"I couldn't help but overhear, but you were saying something along the lines that a horse named Arrow is going to win the competition next week?" he spoke, his voice as smooth as honey, and equally grounding as his eyes. But the tone he spoke in also held a slight hint of annoyance.

But Alec brain immediately wired down on the name of his horse, restoring his confidence as quickly as it went. "Well, yes," he answered, the boastful comments ready on his tongue. He had managed to pick up his jaw from the floor and straightened his shoulders considerably. His signature egoistic smirk took place on his face (with a slight flirt undertone).

The man's body language of concealed annoyance still hadn't vanished. He continued to smile sarcastically, before batting his eyelashes, "Is that even possible when a horse like Si Merah is also competing in the very same derby?"

The flashbulb in Alec's brain short-circuited, the fuse giving away completely at the mention of _that_ name. His body gained a hostile stance, as his mind tried to gather enough thoughts on what to do.

His teeth grinded against each other. "Who the hell are _you_?" He spat out, his voice lacking all the civility that was there just a few moments ago. Alec's eyes became guarded, and his good old scowl made way to his face.

The man who he was so enamored by before, simply smiled, with no sign of him doing it forcibly. This time, this man was beaming with pride, "I'm Magnus Bane. The owner of Si Merah...The only champion horse I know." He winked at Alec's expression of pure unadulterated shock.

Si Merah.

Magnus Bane.

Oh shit.

~~ ~~  ~~

Alec paced around in his suite, both his arms crossed. He exhaled loudly before using one hand to make the classic thinker's pose while resting his elbow on the other hand which was trying to calm down his heaving chest.

What just happened out there was really...unexpected.

Because first things first, he had absolute no idea that _the Magnus Bane_ was going to take part in this derby. Alec scrunched his eyes shut to focus on any facts he knows of Magnus.

Magnus Bane, the owner of Si Merah, a red mare, was a famous name thrown around in the world of horse racing. He, along with his horse, were highly acclaimed duo of champions, winning almost every single horse race there is in the continent of Europe. In fact, Alec had quite often seen his face in the news and papers. He had never given much thought to the man, but now that he is here...in America...about to compete in the very same race Arrow was in...

...No.

Alec stopped himself from pacing. His mind came to an abrupt stop as he took in a deep breath to bring some rationality to his brain.

He laughed to himself hysterically, running a hand through his windswept hair. Why was he being so frightened for the fact that Magnus Bane was here along with his champion horse? How could he have just forgotten that he too has a champion horse who he also had absolute faith in as well?

He shook his head to himself. He shouldn't be undermining Arrow's capabilities. After all, he was pretty sure that he has won as many as competitions Si Merah had. There was nothing to worry about...

Although, Alec had to stop himself from being relived from the positive thinking,  he had to consider the realistic and what-if possibilities as well. He took out his phone as he perched himself on his bed tensely. Once he opened Google, he began to investigate what he was up against.

He typed 'Si Merah' in the search bar and clicked on the search button, resisting the urge to bite his fingernails. Various headlines popped up, making his eyes widen comically. His heart beat fasts in fear as to what he was about to see.

The picture that popped up first was of course, of the fierce spitfire red mare, standing in the sunlight, shining in glory. The picture was taken right after she had won in a race. The next picture was of her, standing in the near exact pose, but this time alongside with two men.

The caption right under the picture quoted these words, " _Si Merah, the winner of the German cup, along with her jockey, Raphael Santiago, and her owner, Magnus Bane_."

Alec breathed in angrily when he saw that Magnus was looking the same beautiful self, smiling widely, styled hair blowing in the air carefree. The jockey however didn't look as ecstatic as the horse or the owner, just titling one corner of his mouth in a concealed, smug smile.

Alec scrolled further down, knuckles tightening when he saw words of praise such as "absolutely _stunning race_ ", " _Si Merah and Raphael Santiago are at it, once again!_ ", " _fantastic competition_ ", " _Raphael is one of the best jockeys out there_ ", and the last one that made the hazel eyed man's eyes blaze up, " _Si Merah is unbeatable_!".

Alec exited the tab hastily, dropping his phone on the bed and putting his head in his hands frustratingly. He didn't know what he was frustrated at himself, or Magnus Bane and his mare. He really shouldn't be doubting Simon and Arrow's abilities like this; he should be, instead, believing in  them and not paying this much attention on the devilishly beautiful man...Why is he being like this?

Alec pulled at his own tousled hair harder and groaned in frustration. When Magnus had introduced himself at the field, the two men behind him, who were initially gushing about his horse, soon shifted their attention to Si Merah. Clearly the mare wasn't the only one famous for the two men had gasped out loud when Magnus had appeared.

"No way," one had said reverently and disbelieving at the same time. "You're Magnus Freakin' Bane?"

Magnus had smiled a very sincere smile, which Alec gaped at because it was a change from his sarcastic one previously. Before he could've replied a 'yes', a man in a black suit had come up to Magnus to tell him that he was needed elsewhere.

But before he had left, he spared another  challenging smile to which Alec responded with his own  glaring eyes that could burn holes through almost anything. But the Asian man hadn't been fazed, nor put off by it, because he happily had sauntered away, chatting with the man who had come to inform him.

Lydia turned out to be traitor for she had just stood there and giggled profusely and snorted something along the lines of "I see you've met your match."

A knock on his door brought him out of his conflicted mind. He got up from his bed with a sigh and walked to the door, shaking his head the same time. When he opened the door, he was met with the sight of the hotel's staff member, who was holding a large tray with a single envelope perched upon it.

He took the letter after thanking the man with smile and bow. Once the door to his suite was closed, he intricately tore the envelope open, curious as to see what the letter contained.

It was an invite to a very highly esteemed and sophisticated party being hosted in the ballroom in the hotel, in celebration of the next week's derby. The invite was extended to all the owner and jockeys of the horses and their dates. The party would also grandly welcome the people who Alec calls 'the high and haughty people of the society'.

Alec grunted at the cream colored card in his hand, not believing his luck. This is the last thing he needs, a party which he has to attend all dressed up. He was going to use the night designated for the party as a night of brainstorming strategies against Magnus Bane and his horse. He would also have to relay those ideas to Simon so that they could practice with Arrow.

Speaking of ill-fate, another knocking sound on the door resounded throughout the room. But this time, he could very well see who was on the other side of it as if the door wasn't there at all.

Alec sighed loudly, "You're quick."

A chirpier voice replied from the other side, "Would you believe me that your dressing crisis is like a bat signal for me?"

Alec rolled his eyes and opened the door widely, with gusto. There stood in her all glory, his sister, Isabelle Lightwood.

Alec knew that his little sister would try to dress him up for the event; even though he had just received the invite, the unconscious side of his brain sensed his sister walking up the door with her dagger-like pointed heels to help him up with his look.

"I don't have a dressing crisis," Alec scoffed, letting the determined woman enter into his suite to bestow him with the dress-up torture. Izzy ignored his comment and dived into his walk-in closet like a swimmer does into a pool. "I actually have brought a suit, you know," he called out from outwside the closet.

"Oh come on, big brother," Izzy called back, the sounds of hangers moving reaching Alec's ear. "It's been a long time since I got the chance to style you for a party!"

"You did it last time!" Alec refuted, resisting the urge to stomp one foot like how he used to do in an argument with his sister when they were younger.

"Alec!" Izzy gasped, coming in Alec's line of vision finally by standing in between the two closet doors, holding up a plain white shirt. "Last time I had just unbuttoned two buttons on your shirt. How is that called 'styling'?" she asked exasperatedly.

Alec snatched the shirt from her hands, "It just was." He knew his retort was of a five year old but if doing that means he could get his way, then he sure would dwell more on his innate childish tendencies.

He plopped on his bed with his shoulders slumped comically. "Can I just... not go for this?  I really need time to...think about something."

Izzy re-emerges from the closet with another shirt hanging from her forearm, her eyes shifted to one of understanding, "You need time to think about how you're going to beat Magnus next week?''

Alec's head snapped up. "How do you know that?" He asked incredulously.

Izzy hummed, facing away from to move some of the hangers, "Simon told me." Alec rolled his eyes. Of course that nerd told her. He was standing right there in the field and probably saw the exchange from afar.

"And he pretty much put two and two together and told me about your possible competitive streak with him," she carried on, before turning to Alec to give him a grin. "And also Simon is a huge fan of the guy who jockeys for Magnus," she added casually. "Thought you should know."

Alec groaned, "Oh God, please don't tell me that he'll ask Raphael Santiago for an autograph in the middle of the race."

Izzy hummed in thought once again, "I've come to a certain point in my relationship with Simon where I can say with absolute surety that he _will_ do that."

Alec snorted, "I'm not even dating Simon but even _I_ know that he _will_ do that. That kid is just one giant open book." Izzy snorted even louder.

"You're right about the...'giant' part."

Alec made a confused sound before it morphed into one of horror. He threw the shirt in his hand at Izzy, which hit her face straightaway. She was laughing uncontrollably before the laugh turned into an evil one. Alec was cringing at the piece of information he had just received to notice the warning of what was to come.

"That was something I didn't need to know, _hermana_ ," Alec screeched, getting up from his place on the bed to stare at his sister with a disgusted look.

"Then how about this?" Izzy began, sauntering over to him with a even more cunning look, if that was possible. "You let me style you for this party and I won't tell you anymore details about what Simon and I are doing in our couples suite with a view of a meadow."

Alec's eyes widened in shock before the initial fear took its place. He definitely did not need to know what was going on in the couples suite with a meadow view. "Okay! Fine! Style me, but please..." he held a finger up at Izzy's face. "...do not tell me anything."

Izzy gave a pleased grin. "Great!" she exclaimed happily, throwing a pair of pants she suddenly acquired out of nowhere at Alec. "Let's start with this."

Alec gave an uncomfortable look, "Izzy, this is a little too tight on me. I literally feel the pants than my own legs."

"Then  why did you buy it?"

"I-I didn't! You bought it for _me_!" 

"Then I bought it for a reason," Izzy huffed, refusing to take back the material dangling from Alec's hands.  She turned back to the closet to scour for more outfits that probably would remind Alec to burn them later. "Also, Alec, what else did the invite say?" his evil little sister asked casually.

Alec grunted in disdain at how he was being pushed around like a mannequin. "Just that all the horse owners, jockeys and their dates are invited to the party being held at this ball room. And some dignitaries are also mentioned to be attending."

The sounds of hangers moving stopped altogether.  Slow sounds of her footsteps towards Alec began once again before Izzy slowly came back into his line of vision with a pensive look.

"All the horse owners and their jockeys?" she asked first. Alec rolled his eyes.

"Yes yes, technically Simon and you are invited as well. Just don't tell me what you're planning to do to him after the party," he huffed, judging the pants he was holding with a displeased look on his face.

Izzy made a clicking sound with her tongue. "Alec, I wasn't talking about that," she insisted. "You do realize that the infamous Magnus Bane is also going to be at this party, right?"

Alec dropped the pants from his hands.

Well, he damn didn't think about that all.

~~  ~~  ~~

As usual, Alec was right in his assessment that the pants Izzy had chosen were unfairly tight.

When he was trying to wear it, he had to sit for five minutes to catch his breathy, something unusual for someone of his stamina. The  black pants were paired with a plain white yet fashionable shirt (Izzy felt slight tinge of guilt after seeing his crestfallen look when he realized a certain someone was also attending the party) and a deep black, comfortable suit jacket. It genuinely looked like something Alec would wear if he put his mind to finding these pieces of item.

He was checking his reflection in the mirror of the grand elevator. He was trying to tame his hair which was ruffled up by Izzy. He straightened the collar of his jacket more appropriately and unknowingly formed a smile on his face, pleased with how he looked today.

The elevator came to its designated floor where the party was happening. He could hear to sounds of chatter and faint instrumental music playing from where he was standing. He took in two large, deep breaths before angling his shoulders more upright, and walked out of the elevator to face the music...And people.

A man in uniform smiled at him from the door, politely asking him for his name. Once Alec gave his name to him, the door was opened for him and the bright social event welcomed him, with a headache.

Everyone was dressed in classy suits and dresses, something Alec glad about for he felt the tinge of doubt that he may have had over-dressed. Waiters swooped now and then through the crowd, holding trays of flutes of champagne, offering it to all the guests, who didn't pay much attention to the waiter per say, reaching the glasses almost as if on instinct. Alec decided to blend in by accepting one glass from a passing waiter with a word of gratitude. He was usually not a man who enjoyed alcohol but there were some drinks he could tolerate for the sake of others (and as of now, for the sake of himself).

The room was well lit with a bright, extensive chandelier hanging very symmetrically from the centre of the room. The red drapes hanging at the large panels of french windows, added a sense of soft hue and elegance to the area.

The party wasn't too loud, nor too quiet. There wasn't any loud music playing that would disrupt conversations, but rather soft instruments that soothed everyone present there to talk more freely. Although, Alec stood in the centre of it all, quietly, as he didn't know anyone who was present there who he could converse with.

Coincidentally, Simon Lewis found him just mere minutes after he began to feel awkward. His eyes were bright and happy, not minding the place one bit. Alec gave him a once over to notice that the man was also a victim of Izzy's stylist persona. But maybe the difference between them was that Simon would gladly let Izzy do whatever she wanted with his clothes while Alec didn't.

"Hey buddy!" Simon let out, aiming for a fist bump which Alec pointedly ignored. Simon chuckled awkwardly before letting his hand drop. "Still not a fan of greetings, huh?"

It wouldn't be fair to say that Simon wasn't close to Alec. In reality, this was their type of friendship. Simon doing his dorky things around Alec which he ignores, and if the weather was right, they would actually carry a decent, friendly conversation on things such as archery, Arrow, horse-riding, and Marvel comics (which Alec would quite actively deny ever reading).

"Not a big fan of _this_ ," Alec corrected, gesturing vaguely at the entirety of the ball room. Simon gave an understanding look and nod. "Where's Izzy?" Alec asked, surprised that Simon wasn't hanging to her by the arm.

"She met one of our closest friends, Maia, here," Simon answered. "You would get along with her very well. Both of you roll your eyes a lot."

As if to emphasize on that statement, Alec playfully rolled his eyes which Simon genuinely laughs at, no hints of awkwardness at all.

They stand there quietly, just observing the general crowd present in the room, both of them often recognizing someone or the other and lowly telling each other about them. Finally, a thought hit Alec out of nowhere, realizing he hadn't discussed it with Simon yet.

"We need to talk about what we're going about Magnus Bane," Alec said in a low voice, bringing himself back to business.

Simon stiffened. "Oh boy, you aren't talking about murdering him, right?"

Alec took a sip of the champagne before spluttering at the weird idea, "N-No! Jesus hell Simon, what are you even talking about?"

Simon raised his arms up in surrender. "I'm just saying, I'm really not good around blood."

"Just..." Alec raised his finger up to stop Simon, "...shut up, Simon. I was talking about discussing Arrow's practice regimes for the derby next week now that we know this...Si Merah," Alec said the word distrustfully. "is competing in it as well." Alec looked out at the crowd again before looking back at Simon. "Not that I think you're incapable of beating them," Alec added hurriedly. "But I just want to be able to understand what we're dealing with here."

"No I get it, I get it, Alec," Simon said understandingly. "But maybe you should doubt me a little. I was watching videos of Raphael and Si Merah whole day and holy shit, they literally kill the track they race on! I mean, that duo is like literally a spark of fire together. Like, Raphael is like the inner blue part of the fire and Si Merah is the outer yellow part flickering like holy dam-" Simon kept gushing on and on, explaining with his hands,  making Alec flush with worry and impatience.

"Simon," Alec gritted out. "Shut. Up."

Another thing that made Simon and Alec a good duo themselves is that fact that they both are two little self-doubtful creatures.

Alec breathed heavily at the crowd once again, trying to calm down his racing heartbeat. He tried to take another sip of the champagne only to notice that his glass was empty. He grumbled angrily before excusing himself from Simon's equally threatened stance to get another glass of champagne from a counter nearby. He could've waited for a waiter to come by and offer it, but he really needed to get away from Simon. Mostly because he felt that both of them were not making it easier on themselves by discussing the problem at hand at a place where neither of them are comfortable. It'd be better if they kept some distance from  one another just for the night. They also need to sleep, in order to feel more capable at handling the threat.

Alec reached the counter, his eyes focusing on the rows of flutes of champagne. He grabbed on and took  a large gulp from it, resisting the urge to cough out loud. When he turned back to see where he had left Simon, he found that, unsurprisingly, Simon had left, probably gone to where Izzy was.

 Alec felt a little alone at place full of people, but he forced himself to stomach it. He had asked Lydia to be his platonic date for the night, but unfortunately, she had to back out for an urgent conference call . He hated that, unlike her, he didn't have his work engagements to occupy his mind with as he had taken a leave. He hated he couldn't use it as an excuse like Lydia had to escape this empty party.

He was calmly sipping on his champagne when he felt something red move in the corner of his eye. And the movement look so familiar that for a second, Alec was hit with a sense of déjà vu. When he turned his head, he saw, standing there, dressed in the color as red as the Devil, Magnus Frickin' Bane. The walking and talking reason for his racing heartbeat.

The man wore a pair of black pants, that may have been tighter than the one Alec was wearing, with a matching black button up shirt inside, which was mostly covered by his suit jacket, which stood out the most among the rest of the attire. It was a bright red color, with black and white leaf designs that looked like shining crystals embedded on the suit. The designs resided on the right topmost shoulder before ending abruptly to the centre of his right chest. The design started from the same spot, on the left side, but this time, extending downwards to sparkle up the left side of his torso very elegantly.

Alec gulped at the sight, because it seemed Magnus didn't want him to live for he was also wearing very fierce makeup. His lips were glossed with tempting pink and his eyes had winged liner of red, complimenting his jacket even more. His hair was styled as elegantly as the rest of him, the tips of the hair dipped with a very dark red that shone only when the light graced it.

Suddenly, Alec forgot every single word of English from one sight of the devilishly smiling man.

Magnus smile became a tad more seductive, after noticing Alec's obvious gaping. He sauntered to where Alec was standing to grab a hold of a glass of champagne as well.

"Looks like I got your tongue once again," the entity began, taking a sip from his champagne. His tone held the same condescension which he spoke in earlier to Alec.

The tone dropped a block of ice on Alec head because he snapped back to reality, his chest filling with anger. "What do you want?" He spat out, not being  able to stand the face of the man all of a sudden.

Magnus stepped back in surprise. What did he expect? That Alec won't snap back at him for being insufferable? "Calm down, I was only just trying to talk," he spoke as if he was trying to tame a wild animal.

This, however, infuriated Alec even more. "Really? It didn't seemed like you wanted to have a ice chat this morning when you came out of nowhere to indirectly tell me that you're horse is going to beat mine next week. Save this friendly side of you, it's not going to work on me," Alec gave back, ready to walk away from Magnus in order to avoid a messier fight.

But it was the sudden anger in Magnus' voice that kept him in one place. "What? Didn't like the fact that someone said they have the power to destroy ego? You should've heard yourself at the field, you sounded like this teenage boy who could not keep gushing on and on how he's better than others." Unlike Alec, who had raised his voice slightly in the argument, Magnus sound perfectly of normal decibel, but his words and voice held animosity.

Alec didn't like the fact that he was called a 'teenager'. He felt his own body shake abnormally,   
"So you just decide to humiliate me in front of two visitors because you wanted to teach me a lesson? Who do you think you are to teach _me_ a lesson?"

Magnus snorted. "I didn't want to teach you a lesson; I just wanted to you to shut up because honestly you had begun to annoy me with that cow-sized pride of yours."

Alec sputtered. "You could've just fucking walked away. But noooo, you wanted to be childish and shove the fact that you're the Magnus Bane who has won multiple trophies in the Europe, so honestly, who's the one with a cow-sized pride here?"

Alec's sudden loud voice brought many people's attention to where the two men were standing. Some of them gasped as the recognized them. Alec Lightwood, owner of Arrow, who's the champion horse in America. And Magnus Bane, who's the owner of Si Merah, the champion horse of Europe. Two of them arguing about a match of egos in the very morning.

Alec didn't know why he let his temper go out of hand the moment Magnus came out of nowhere. Maybe it was the fact that he had spent hours, wracking his head over that the man and his champion. In reality, Alec couldn't admit that he was threatened. He felt threatened that everything he had believed in himself and Arrow for, could easily be destroyed by a man who had never competed before in America.

And Alec hated that knowledge. He unconsciously hated it. And he hated this man even more.

Alec's frustration at not being able to understand Magnus Bane showed in his argument and acrimony. And no one could exactly blame Magnus for retaliating.

"I can't believe you," Magnus said, this time louder than before, throwing his hands up in the air. "You're being absolute ridiculous here. If only I had known that I'm competing with someone so unprofessional." Another man came out of nowhere to try and grab a hold of Magnus' shoulder as if to calm him down. Alec immediately recognized him as Raphael Santiago, the jockey, from the articles. "Just say it plain that you're threatened by me," Magnus disputed plainly,  ignoring Raphael's words of comfort.

Alec bit the inside of his cheek hard to the point he felt the area bleed. His jaw tensed before he gathered himself to come up with something he had noticed in an article. "I'm not threatened by you!" he clamored, straightening himself so that he's trying to  tower over Magnus, something he unintentionally does during a fight. "I beat Lorenzo Rey, while all you did was run away!"

Suddenly, gasps surrounded the angry men. Raphael and Magnus stiffened up, the latter's eye changing to one of disbelief. Raphael seemed to suddenly shrink, as if he too was hurt by Alec's words.

The gasps subsided before a tense silence took place. "How dare you?" Magnus said, quietly, the fury in the man seemed to have doubled. Alec gulped as he suddenly felt that what he said was something he should not have said.

While scrolling through the articles, Alec had come across one very interesting one. During the grand derby of Italy in 2016, Si Merah and her jockey Raphael Santiago, had been mysteriously been backed out of the derby just one day before the actual race. Many of the articles speculated that the reason was that Magnus didn't want his undefeatable reputation broken by the infamous Lorenzo Rey, so he had quietly withdrawn his horse as a contestant. Many of the press tried to get an answer from Magnus for a confirmation on the story, but the Asian man stayed quiet, which the press took as the actual confirmation. Few months later, Lorenzo took part in a derby in America where he was beaten by none other than Arrow, Alec's beloved horse.

It looked like whatever that may have happened in that time, Magnus must have buried it under the hatchet. And he didn't like the fact that Alec brought the memory out once again.

"You don't a single fucking thing about me, Lightwood!" Magnus yelled, his voice at its loudest. Raphael seemed to be holding Magnus back, but he didn't seemed to be putting his entire strength, his eyes were downcast and his shoulders tensed.

"Well, neither do you!" Alec countered, his fury not calmed down one bit despite Magnus' sudden increase of energy. "So why don't you stop trying to assume you know about my ego and my horse, huh? Why don't you?" He felt the presence of two arms around him, and he didn't need to look down to know that it was Simon trying to hold him back.

"I can't fucking believe I actually came up to you right to now to apologize the way I acted today." Manus shook his head and began to step back, making it easier for Raphael. "Just stay the fuck out of my face," he said lastly before walking away with Raphael who seemed silent in his comfort.

"You don't have to tell me to _fucking_ do anything!" Alec yelled back, finally relenting to go along with Simon, and Isabelle, who was watching all of this silently.

"Can you believe the guy?" Alec retorted, when he caught sight of Izzy.

Alec was huffing and panting in his residual anger to notice that his fight with Magnus was the highlight of the party, with the amount of people that were staring at them.

And he certainly did not notice the two hungry eyes staring at them from afar.

~~  ~~  ~~

"Did you see that?" a tall, blonde man asked hurriedly, with a hint of excitement in his voice, to the bald man sitting right next to him. He had a distinct British accent and a calculative twinkle of mirth and nefariousness in his eyes.

The man he asked the question to hummed pensively, observing the two grumbling men walking to the opposite sides of the room with few people trying to calm them down. Oh yes, he knew one of these men very well, and he's now eager to know the taller one who just tried to cross the other.

"I did," the man answered plainly, concealing his own mirth and malicious intent better than the younger man sitting next to him.

"Looks like Mr. Alec Lightwood could be a very great help to us in the coming week."

**Author's Note:**

> twitter-[Annplanet](https://twitter.com/annplanet8)


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